SHS2, JHS2 students return to school on 5 October, all others in January – President Akufo-Addo

President Akufo-Addo says second-year students in senior high school (SHS) and junior high school (JHS) will resume academic work on 5 October 2020

Wilberforce Asare August 30, 2020

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President of the Republic of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo

President Akufo-Addo says second-year students in senior high school (SHS) and junior high school (JHS) will both resume academic work on 5 October 2020 to complete their academic work, which was put on hold because of the outbreak of COVID-19 in Ghana in March this year.

President Akufo-Addo made this announcement during his 16th address to the nation since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19 in Ghana, today 30 August 2020.

“The decision has been taken by the Ghana Education Service after consultation with the relevant stakeholders, for SHS2 and JHS2 students to return to school from 5 October to 14 December 2020 to complete their academic year,” President Akufo-Addo said.

“With junior high schools operating with class sizes of 30, and senior high schools with class sizes of 25, SHS2 and JHS2 students will be in school for ten weeks to study, and write their end-of-term examinations.

“SHS2 students in boarding houses are to return to their various dormitories on 5 October, while day students, respecting fully the COVID-19 protocols, will commute from home to their respective schools on the same date. Prior to reopening, all junior and senior high schools will be fumigated and disinfected,” the president further said.

Provision of PPE

The president further said, “Just as was done in the case of final-year university, JHS and SHS students, all JHS2 and SHS2 students, as well as all teaching and non-teaching staff, will be given reusable face masks.”

ach school will be provided with Veronica buckets, gallons of liquid soap, rolls or tissue paper, thermometer guns, and 200 millilitre containers of sanitisers. JHS2 students will be given one hot meal a day. Assemblies and sporting events remain banned; and the use by outsiders of school premises for other activities is still not allowed.

“We will continue to ensure that each school, which does not have its own sick bay, has been mapped to a health facility, and care is provided to the sick by nurses assigned to them,” the President said.

Rest of academic year

According to President Akufo-Addo, the Ghana Education Service, after further consultation, has decided to postpone the remainder of the academic year for all nursery, kindergarten, primary, JHS1 and SHS1 students.

“The next academic year will resume in January 2021, with appropriate adjustments made to the curriculum to ensure that nothing is lost from the previous year.

“The relevant dispositions will also be made so that the presence, at the same time, in school of all streams of students, can occur in safety,” the president said.

Contact sports

On the matter of contact sporting activities such as football, the president said that in the next couple of weeks a decision will be taken on the timelines for its resumption, taking into consideration the imminent participation of some national teams in international competitions.

“As a known lover of football, I know how devastating its absence has been, and it is my hope that very soon we will all have the pleasure of playing and watching the beautiful game again,” the president said.

Click on the link to listen to the presidents address.